It was odd to see that most of the letters had been written before the nuclear blast had vaporized Mother Holly and changed the world. They were almost a snapshot into a more innocent past...she shook her head, dismissing the absurd thought, then reached for the final letter. Jade had written to her a day ago, according to the postmarks. He’d just been lucky enough to be in a city connected to the portal network.
Master Grey, he’d written, was upset about the explosion, although he didn’t say why. Emily read it twice, unable to avoid a sense that Master Grey was complaining for the sake of complaining, then mentally started to compose an angry reply before she thought better of it. Maybe he’d worked out that the explosion had been too powerful to have been the work of a necromancer, even one who had lost control completely, or...
She scowled, then put the letters back on the table and lay back on the bed. There would be time to reply later, she told herself, once everything had settled. Maybe then she would know what to tell her friends. Placing the snake-bracelet beside her head, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.
Her dreams, thankfully, were peaceful.
Epilogue
THE GRANDMASTER SAID NOTHING ELSE UNTIL Sergeant Miles had joined them and complex, almost impenetrable privacy wards were erected around his office. Lady Barb nodded politely to the sergeant, then turned to look back at the Grandmaster. The older man looked borne down by the weight he was carrying. It was hard to play mentor to an entire community of magicians, certainly when combined with his other responsibilities.
“Well,” the Grandmaster said, finally. “What do you think she did?”
Lady Barb gave him a cold look. She’d sworn not to reveal any of Emily’s secrets, but Emily hadn’t told her anything about the spell that had caused the blast.
“I don’t know,” she said. “It’s possible that Emily somehow caused Mother Holly to lose control of her magic, but the blast was far greater than it should have been.”
The Grandmaster looked unconvinced. “And she’s more notorious than ever,” he added. “Is she ready for Mountaintop?”
“No,” Lady Barb said, bluntly. “She is nowhere near ready.”
“I must concur,” Sergeant Miles agreed. “She has mastered more than I expected, given how...early she was forced to join my class, but she is still young and inexperienced.”
“She didn’t freeze this time,” Lady Barb said. She briefly related the whole encounter with Hodge. “Still, she isn’t ready.”
“We have few options,” the Grandmaster said. “Do either of you have a better one?”
Lady Barb and Sergeant Miles exchanged glances. Neither of them spoke.
“For better or worse, Child of Destiny or not, Emily has tipped our world upside down,” the Grandmaster said, quietly. “People have started to notice. Lin’s infiltration of Whitehall was merely the most blatant intelligence-gathering attempt...and it succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. We need to counterattack as quickly as possible.”
“And you plan to use her to gather intelligence,” Lady Barb sneered. “Emily is good at many things, Grandmaster, but she isn’t ready for this.”
“Yes, I thought you liked her,” Sergeant Miles said. He shook his head, bitterly. “But the Grandmaster is right. There isn’t anyone else who can do this for us.”
Lady Barb sighed. “Then I suggest you give her a few days to recuperate before you broach the topic with her,” she said, tiredly. “And then we will plan out a crash-course in mastering all the skills she needs to complete your mission.”
“Understood,” the Grandmaster said. “I have faith that you will prepare her to the best of your ability.”
“No matter how prepared she is,” Lady Barb said, “she may well fail.”
She glared at the Grandmaster. “You are not to guilt her into this,” she added. “She is not to feel that she has no choice, or that the whole mess is her fault. If she chooses to undertake your mission, she is to do it of her own free will. I will not stand for anything less.”
Beside her, Sergeant Miles nodded in agreement.
“I will speak to her in a week,” the Grandmaster said. “And I give you my word that she can make up her own mind. But we are truly out of other options.”
“Then may the gods help us all,” Lady Barb said.
The End
The saga will continue in
The School of Hard Knocks
About the author
Christopher G. Nuttall is thirty-one years old and has been reading science fiction since he was five when someone introduced him to children’s SF. Born in Scotland, Chris attended schools in Edinburgh, Fife and University in Manchester…before moving to Malaysia to live with his wife Aisha.
Chris has been involved in the online Alternate History community since 1998; in particular, he was the original founder of Changing The Times, an online alternate history website that brought in submissions from all over the community. Later, Chris took up writing and eventually became a full-time writer.
Current and forthcoming titles published by Twilight Times Books:
Schooled in Magic YA fantasy series
Schooled in Magic—book 1
Lessons in Etiquette —book 2
A Study in Slaughter —book 3
Work Experience —book 4
The School of Hard Knocks —book 5
The Decline and Fall of the Galactic Empire military SF series
Barbarians at the Gates—book 1
The Shadow of Cincinnatus —book 2
The Barbarian Bride—book 3
Chris has also produced The Empire’s Corps series, the Outside Context Problem series and many others. He is also responsible for two fan-made Posleen novels, both set in John Ringo’s famous Posleen universe. They can both be downloaded from his site.
Website: http://www.chrishanger.net/
Blog: http://chrishanger.wordpress.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristopherGNuttall
Work Experience (Schooled in Magic Book 4) Page 39